The maturing of the CXO role demands we shift our thinking on service delivery models and face the reality that members are beginning to place a higher value on our processes over our people. A clean, friction-free process beats the warmest smile and the firmest handshake.
Jimmy Lovelace joined Community First Credit Union of Florida ($3.0B, Jacksonville, FL) as its vice president of branches in 2014 after several years with a major bank. He became the Florida cooperative’s chief experience officer in March 2023.
What has changed in member experience, what hasn’t, and how has its leadership matured at credit unions?
Jimmy Lovelace: Let’s start with what hasn’t changed. The member still expects and deserves a great experience. What has changed is how we deliver it and what key components define it.
There was a time when we focused on things like “service with a smile” or “speed of answer” in call centers. With the digital age, service is more about first-point-of-contact resolution, transparency, and instant digital delivery, fulfillment, and empowerment.
AI is here and upending all pre-conceived notions on process design and digital delivery. Service used to be personal, requiring multiple in-person touchpoints to deliver. But the landscape has shifted. The member might prefer to go it alone but wants to feel that whoever designed the process did so with them in mind.
Fintechs do an excellent job of removing barriers in digital processes that we insist on having a human do. Members love a human in the loop when they want it, but we continue to insist our digital processes include that human touch because we have conditioned ourselves to believe that people equal service.
The maturing of the CXO role demands we shift our thinking on service delivery models and face the reality that members are beginning to place a higher value on our processes over our people. A clean, friction-free process beats the warmest smile and the firmest handshake.
How does your organization approach member experience, and where does dedicated MX leadership have the most impact today?
Jimmy Lovelace: There has long been a saying that “service is everyone’s responsibility.” We all play a role in delighting our members, but the CXO is responsible for the strategy and interconnectivity of our delivery channels into one seamless experience.
It’s this role that collaborates with key stakeholders to create a vision for what role branches play in membership growth and market development. The CXO is responsible for activating the contact center as a sales and service provider to support service and growth.
This role also integrates into all digital delivery channels so we can serve our members in the ways they want. Once the strategy is locked in, the CXO becomes a central figure in developing and deploying the tactical plans, roadmaps, and metrics that keep the member experience aligned with organizational expectations.
Finally, the CXO serves as the key listening post for members and teammates so their feedback remains central to strategy shifts and modifications. Although there are organizations that fold these duties into multiple roles, there is greater value in having one collaborator curating the experience to exceed organizational expectations.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
Don’t stop here. Jimmy Lovelace helps Community First realize the benefits of humanizing the sales and service processes. Read more in “Jimmy Lovelace On Leadership.”